Friday, September 13, 2013

Today Carl DeMaio – the handpicked candidate of national Republicans – received the endorsement of another out-of-touch, radical Washington Republican, Congressman Tom McClintock. Congressman McClintock’s extreme voting record and hateful rhetoric is completely out of touch with San Diego’s middle class families.

As one of the most conservative Members of Congress – voting with his party 90 percent of the time – Congressman McClintock routinely puts his extreme ideology before solutions, whether it’s cosponsoring a bill to redefine rape, proclaiming that “there’s only one race here, it’s the American race,” or supporting a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.

“Carl DeMaio claims that he’s a ‘new generation Republican,’ but the company he keeps tells a different story: that he’s just another out-of-touch Tea Party Republican,” said Matt Inzeo of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “With Carl DeMaio’s embrace of Tea Party Congressman Tom McClintock, San Diego voters should be worried, since McClintock’s priorities are so out of whack – saying that ‘there’s only one race here, it’s the American race,’ cosponsoring a bill to redefine rape, and supporting a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. It’s clear that Carl DeMaio truly is Washington Republicans’ favorite candidate, and is choosing to put his political party ahead of standing up for the hardworking middle class families of San Diego.”

BACKGROUND

Member of the Tea Party Caucus. Congressman McClintock is a member of the Tea Party Caucus in Congress. [McClatchy, 5/09/12]

McClintock on Immigration: “There’s Only One Race Here, It’s the American Race.” On August 14, 2013, “Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) took a strong stand against multiculturalism at a town hall meeting, arguing that immigrants need to shed their culture, become “the American race,” and if they’re unwilling to do so, “reevaluate” whether they want to be in this country in the first place. ‘There’s only one race here, it’s the American race. And the only way you accomplish that is through assimilation. That is what our immigration laws are designed to promote, and that is precisely what illegal immigration undermines…[..] If immigrants aren’t willing to shed their past culture, said McClintock, “then perhaps that is nature’s way of telling you that, maybe, you should reevaluate your options,’ said McClintock.” [Think Progress, 8/14/13]

Co-Sponsored Bill to Redefine Rape. In 2011, McClintock co-sponsored the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortions Act, which would redefine a ban on federal funding for abortions to exempt only “forcible rape” and not “rape” generally. Under the language proposed by the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortions Act, rape becomes “forcible rape.” The Washington Post reported that the bill’s critics believed “the modifier could distinguish it from other kinds of sexual assault that are typically recognized as rape, including statutory rape and attacks that occur because of drugs or verbal threats.” [HR 3 Co-Sponsors, 112th Congress; Washington Post, 2/01/11]

Part of Ongoing Effort to Amend Constitution to Ban Gay Marriage. In 2013, after the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, McClintock along with other House conservatives sought to reintroduce a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. McClintock “criticized the 5-4 court decision as ‘ideologically driven and legally inconsistent.’” [The Hill, 6/26/13]

McClintock: “Calling a Homosexual Partnership a Marriage Doesn’t Make it One.” In 2008, McClintock supported Proposition 8 that defined marriage as between a man and a woman. “Lincoln asked, 'If you call a tail a leg, how many legs has a dog? The answer is four. Calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it one,'” McClintock said in a statement. “And calling a homosexual partnership a marriage doesn’t make it one,” [LA Times, 10/21/08]